BALTIMORE – The third annual US Lacrosse Stars & Stripes Weekend, featuring the 2008-09 U.S. women's national team, will be hosted by Syracuse University in Syracuse, N.Y. on Saturday and Sunday, October 11-12, 2008. The U.S. team will compete in exhibition games against international teams Scotland and the Haudenosaunee, as well as collegiate teams Syracuse, Cornell and Vermont.

In addition to the U.S. team games, the star-studded lacrosse weekend will feature a US Lacrosse coaching education clinic and a youth player clinic.

"There is something for everyone in Syracuse during Stars and Stripes Weekend," said US Lacrosse’s Upstate NY Chapter board member, Noel Ebner. "We are thrilled to offer training and education opportunities for coaches and players in Central New York. Plus, this is a once in a lifetime opportunity to see so many of the very best women’s lacrosse players from all over the world compete in one location for one weekend."

"This weekend represents an opportunity to provide a competitive experience for our national teams while helping to prepare us for the 2009 World Cup in Prague next summer," said Ann Carpenetti, Women’s Division director for US Lacrosse. "Currently, the U.S. women's World Cup player pool has 48 players on its roster. After the Stars and Stripes weekend in Syracuse, the pool will be split up into the U.S. World Cup training team and the U.S. developmental team."

Three of the 48 players on the U.S. team play for Syracuse: Christina Dove, Halley Quillinan and Katie Rowan. Erica LaGrow (Christian Brothers Academy/UNC ‘08) is the lone Central New Yorker on the U.S. team.

• Click here for current U.S. team player pool

The national team program exists as a training program for U.S. teams for international play and to help promote and develop women’s lacrosse around the country. The U.S. has been the most successful country in international competition, winning five of the seven World Cup events held since 1982 and three of the four U-19 World Championships since 1995. The next World Cup is in Prague, Czech Republic in June 2009.

• Click here to see the full weekend schedule of exhibition games.

Coaches Education Level 1 Instructional Clinic
US Lacrosse will be hosting a Level 1 clinic for coaches on Saturday from 9 a.m.-5 p.m. at Syracuse University's Manley Field House.

About US Lacrosse
US Lacrosse, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation, is the national governing body for men’s and women’s lacrosse. US Lacrosse has more than 250,000 members in 60 regional chapters around the country. Through responsive and effective leadership, US Lacrosse strives to provide programs and services to inspire participation while protecting the integrity of the game. To learn more about US Lacrosse, please visit www.uslacrosse.org.